For many Nigerians who were born some five decades ago, food was not necessarily the item they spent most of their hard-earned incomes on.
But it was still not cheap even to the man on the street as high commodity prices continued to chop off disposable income of the citizens.
As far back as 1984, prices of staples and other commodities were sky-high, informing the then military government to send out soldiers to markets in order to force traders to sell their goods at the proper prices.
“With fuel prices tripling since mid-2023, farmers and traders face higher costs transporting produce from rural areas to urban centres.”
Those who decided to hoard had their stalls broken down and goods sold out to the needy masses, according to a report by London-based West Africa Magazine.
This method, abused by people, did not last for long. Hence, the then Nigerian National Supply Company (NNSC), an agency of the government in charge of combating inflation and scarcity of essential commodities, decided to sell directly to members of the public at reasonable prices.
Despite these control measures by the government headed by General Muhammadu Buhari at the time, prices, especially of food, were still high and almost unaffordable.
“The average family now finds it very difficult to eat three square meals without feeling the pinch,” according to an excerpt from The West African News Magazine of August 20, 1984.
“For example, many families have stopped taking milk, sugar, and tea because they have become very expensive. Even bread that is regarded as a staple food has also gone beyond the reach of the common man,” the weekly magazine firm wrote in its article titled ‘Nigeria: The Spectre of High Prices of Commodities.’.
40 years later, the cries of high food prices are now louder
The situation is not in any way different now. Food prices in Nigeria have been on an upward trajectory, exacerbating household struggles in a nation where over 63 percent of the population already lives below the poverty line.
Food became even more pricey in mid-2023. Nigeria’s removal of the fuel subsidy has had a ripple effect on the cost of transportation, a significant factor in food distribution.
With fuel prices tripling since mid-2023, farmers and traders face higher costs transporting produce from rural areas to urban centres. These costs are passed on to consumers, inflating prices.
The surge in food prices strains household budgets, forcing Nigerians to allocate 97.4 percent of their income to food, according to a report by research and data insights firm Veriv Africa.
Last December, dozens of Nigerians, who are predominantly children and women, died in two separate charity events while struggling to get food and clothing items, highlighting the deepening poverty ravaging the country.
In a report by the research firm Picodi, Nigerians allocate the highest percentage of their income to groceries compared to 105 other countries worldwide surveyed.
Furthermore, the naira’s depreciation has escalated the cost of agricultural imports such as fertiliser, machinery, and improved seeds. According to the Central Bank of Nigeria, the exchange rate volatility has discouraged large-scale investment in agriculture, compounding the sector’s challenges.
Poor food storage facilities causing scarcity in abundance
Nigeria needs at least 300 cold chain hubs across the 774 local government areas to stem the tide of post-harvest losses, according to the Nigerian Stored Produce Research Institute (NSPR).
Lateef Sanni, a professor and executive director, NSPR, said the country recorded about 40 percent post-harvest losses yearly, emphasising that all hands must be on deck to reverse this trend by investing in storage facilities and cold chain hubs across the country.
“We have less than 10 that are just springing up and being supported by donor agencies and development partners from Germany and Switzerland.
“I am calling on the private sector to take advantage of that opportunity and invest in these cold chain hubs to reduce our post-harvest losses,” Sanni said in an interview.
ActionAid, an international charity that focuses on tackling global poverty and injustice in 44 countries plus the Arab Region, estimates Nigeria’s annual post-harvest losses at N3.5 trillion.
That is about the same as 2023’s combined value of the country’s imported and exported agricultural goods, which reached N3.53 trillion.
Read also: High food prices push inflation to 34.6%, 28th year high
Insecurity posing challenges to food security
Security challenges in food-producing regions is another critical factor. States like Benue, Zamfara, and Kaduna, known as Nigeria’s food baskets, have been plagued by farmer-herder conflicts and banditry.
These conflicts have displaced farmers and disrupted planting and harvesting activities, reducing food supply.
A report by SBM Intel shows that farmers in the North-West region of the country paid N139.5 million to bandits as levies within a period of four years (2020-2023). This is as the farmers also paid over N1.19 billion for their release from bandits’ dens, a situation that is worsening the food security ambition of the government.
Nigeria is not importing enough!
Nigeria needs more imports, especially food imports, to thin out inflation that’s continued to erode purchasing power and plunged 129 million Nigerians into poverty.
A Lagos-based research firm, Financial Derivative Company, reported a startling statistic: Nigeria’s imports per capita stand at $215, significantly lower than Brazil’s $1,635, Turkey’s $4,197, South Africa’s $1,992, and Mexico’s $5,121. In essence, Nigeria’s import levels are among the lowest compared to those of its peers.
The low level of imports reflects inadequate access to external food supplies, highlighting challenges in sourcing and infrastructure that hinder the country’s ability to supplement its domestic food production, according to a report by Veriv Africa.
“Coupled with Nigeria’s severe food inflation, this exacerbates the economic burden on households. Limited import volumes contribute to constrained market supply, keeping prices elevated.”
Nigeria must implement the Right to Food Act
For Nigeria to be food secure, both the federal and state governments should harmonise policies on food and implement the Right to Food Act, according to John Makina, country director of Oxfam Nigeria.
“Food forms the cornerstone of any national development,” Makina said in a televised program, citing the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO); over 30 million Nigerians will miss their food entitlement. “Right to food is an entitlement for every Nigerian,” he added.
The road ahead
While the Nigerian government introduced a 150-day duty-free window in July 2024 for essential food imports, which didn’t yield tangible results, policy experts say the country must adopt clear, policy-driven solutions that promote free trade and support the growth of local agriculture.
“By tying government policies to incentives for local and foreign investments in food production, Nigeria can create a robust agricultural sector capable of meeting domestic demand.
“This clean slate approach and innovative governance can significantly improve Nigeria’s food security and reduce the impact of external factors like global food price fluctuations,” Veriv Africa said in a report.
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